Brazil’s Museu Nacional Was More Than Just a Museum
Brazil's oldest natural history museum has burned down. The institution played a crucial part in creating Brazil's identity as a country.
Preserving South America’s Uncontacted Tribes
There are still tribes living in the Amazon rain forest who carry on their traditional way of life and rebuff attempts at contact.
The Stolen Children of Argentina
Between 1976 and 1983, some 30,000 Argentines were "disappeared," their children seized by the junta. The Abuelas—the Grandmothers—of the Plaza refuse to forget.
What Is MS-13, Anyway?
The feared gang MS-13 was born out of conditions resulting from U.S. policies in El Salvador in the early 1980s.
From Saturnalia to Coachella
Art, music, religious, and seasonal festivals have been a part of human life since prehistory. How have they changed as society has changed?
Venezuela’s Mysterious Tepuis
Many species on the tepui summits are found nowhere else. How did those species get there?
The Race to Save the Axolotl
When an axolotl loses a limb, it regrows, and nary a scar remains. But this incredible creature is on the brink of extinction.
Netflix Is A Questionable Historian
Brazilian social media is in an uproar about a recent Netflix show that portrays Brazilian political corruption. Can film and TV ever get history right?
The Connections Between Coffee and Biodiversity
A new study from the Western Ghats suggests that coffee cultivation does not interfere with bird biodiversity, regardless of what type of bean is grown.
How a Postage Stamp May Have Helped Create the Panama Canal
The decision to build a Panama Canal came about because of two lobbyists, one of whom thought a stamp would make a telling point.